arctic silver 3 on thermal pad after removal

[Colder02]

If you have used the hsf already and the thermal pad has worn away where the core of the processor has been can you still remove the thermal pad even though the thermal pad has been melted down onto the hsf and cpu core?

[Tomteriffic]

Yes, no problem. I use a citrus-based cleaner to dissolve the residue, wiping it off with a towel, then I do a fine cleanup with rubbing alcohol or 90% strength denatured alcohol. Make sure the processor die and the heatsink are both cleaned thoroughly.